Three key Christmas recordings to have for your family

You would like to know what would be really good music to purchase for your children or grandchildren this Christmas? Here are three of our most significant Christmas recordings which have become a part of our family’s Christmas culture. We started with these right about when our children were born, so they always heard these growing up. Here we have the full story of Christmas, some lively music for celebrating, and a collection of children’s stories put to music. Why not incorporate these into your family’s Christmas traditions? Click on the links to purchasing information.

What a marvelous collection! Rutter is so very creative! Parents, you will find yourself playing this recording for yourself–not simply for your children! Rutter has taken Kenneth Graham’s two delightful stories, “The Wind in the Willows” and “The Reluctant Dragon” and set them to charming melodies with well-written lyrics which are well performed–you can follow the diction perfectly–even if it’s in the Queen’s English. Brother Heinrich’s Christmas is a bit silly, but it’s OK for children’s stories to be a little bit so. A donkey’s bray becomes the creative link to finish the melody of a famous Christmas melody, but it is a useful key to help remember the melody. Our favorite has always been “The Wind in the Willows.” Even if the children are wee, this is a good recording for them to grow up with!

Want lively Christmas music with drums and cymbals which makes you want to get moving? Choose either a Medieval or Renaissance flavor!

Whoever would have thought that historic Christmas music, would be so lively, so wonderful to celebrate and dance to! Perfect for your little ones to bounce to! Here’s music which I grew up with, Michael became hooked on while in college, and which our children now associate with Christmas. One of my piano studio families was so excited over the samples they heard, they went ahead and purchased the digital recording just this morning!

Handel’s “Messiah.” Here’s one of the THE classic recordings. You will hear the soloists and the choir sing like they really mean the Scripture verses which are coming out of their mouths!